Tis Herself

Tis Herself... from Germany to Ireland to America Our Anniversary in 3 days Feb 28th

Gentle Reader,

In the spring of 1995 I was on holiday from Trinity

(spring break you would say in America ) and back home [Mallow] trying to persuade some recalcitrant family members to help me restore our family Castle. Castle Dromineen which was the Ancestral home of the O’Callaghan clan who were at one time the Kings of Munster (our property was comprised of an area of about 50,000 acres). I had visions of restoring our castle and turning it into a tourist attraction with banquets and entertainment.

Marti had come from Germany to Ireland having lost her husband in America to Leukemia the year before.

When she saw the Cliff’s of Moher she had me at "I feel like I’ve just come home" The vendor’s at the bottom of the cliff’s played a haunting refrain from some long ago Irish ballad which reminded us of the "troubles" and the Great potato famine which caused so many Grand Irish Families to immigrate to the Americas.

We spent our first "date" in a wee restaurant drinking tea (her) and coffee (me) I was then as even now a poor student and I spent all the punts (like an English pound) just to purchase a small pot of tea for her. "I sense in you a sensitive spirit" I said (no line just my first impression) and she replied "Do you?" I didn’t tell her at first I was a Protestant Minister and it took me almost a year and some 3000 miles later in America to convince her to become my wife. We were married in our wee mobile home by a dear Pastor friend Rex Grant and his lovely wife Martha as our only witness. It’s been a trip and a half as almost immediately I had to leave the church I was serving  to come to Indiana [ it just so happened that Marti had left California to come back to Indiana where her parents lived] to help my Mither with her husband my step father. They had just retired to Indiana and he contracted Alzheimer's disease. So we were married in the State of Indiana.

Marti and I had just begun our life together and I lost a lung working in a Blueprint shop and was fired because I could no longer endure the fumes (they are quite toxic as Blue printers use Ammonia for their making of the Blue prints). Indiana is a "right to work state"  where employers have all the "rights" and the worker has none!Which means I had no recourse and was left with out insurance of any kind. No sooner than I was fired than we discovered that Marti contracted CFS [Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and over the ensuing years has left her bed fast (with no insurance of any kind we have limped along on bit and pieces of disability for me until we could move into low cost housing. We might point out that the Indiana Governor, State Senators, US Representatives, the Surgeon General and even the President of the U.S. (Do I need to tell you who?) Did nothing to help Marti. Even the newspapers and television reporters while they said they wanted to help. did nothing! Perhaps the next Elected official will be more helpful.

But Gentle reader, God is still good, while we have little contact with friends or family (it seems that the expression "out of sight out of mind" is true) We continue to serve where we can and with what resources that we have. I write and study every day . While Marti ministers on the phone to those who need cheering up. This year we will celebrate 12 or is it thirteen years of up and downs. But through it all we remember this "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him." [Colossians Chapter 3 verses 16,17]

And that’s, boys and girls is how I meet my wife, live in America and write to you each day. You are more of an encouragement to me that I ever will be to you! I have never regretted a year with this sensitive spirit who sees into my soul.

Love,  Denis

 "in Daily events I must see the providence of God. Remember this one truth. Nothing happens to you without the stamp of His providence placed upon it before it happens. That's faith"